To train young minds in rational philosophy - for the Philosophy Olympiad, and moreover for Life. My notes and discussions on various topics from Philosophy, Education, Astronomy, Physics & Programming as means to the above-stated end.

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Jan 14, 2010

Assignment of Determinism & Freewill

There are two types of things in the Universe, which are living while the others are non-living. The non-living things are at rest or in their motion until they are disturbed by others body, these non-living things do not alter their own way of motion only if they are in motion. Hence, until some external forces or entities don't disturb the normal cycle of the non-living things till that moment the cycle of non-living things aren't getting diverted from their path. But when these non-living things have random motion then they don't come to stable path until external forces act on them. Hence, we can say that non-livings do not have their will to change their own cycle. Hence, these things aren't related to the concept of "FREEWILL", but these things can be determined.

The past & present observations can help to make hypothesis & then by scientific method we make these hypothesis turn into law. These laws are capable of telling the probability of the non-living thing's existence & their future position or path. On the basis of these laws we can predetermine the world around us with firm basis, but the most important entities in these predetermine world will be non-living things.

Animals & especially humans are the living organisms who can use their brain for thinking. The can decide upon things to be done by them in their near future, only if those things satisfy their materialistic or spiritualistic things. In case of humans, things they do depend mostly either on their thinking or on their emotions. One cannot say that things done by humans are determined because humans decide mostly when they face those kind of conditions. Until then they jus make assumptions about their own behavior. Normatively it is thought that people do not have their freewill because the have to undertake those activities that are forced by their society. But when it is thought rationally it can be concluded that this is a false image that has got fixed in everyone's perspective. People have their freewill as they are allowed to decide upon the things that are necessary for them. The society norms are for namesake as they don't directly affect the freewill of the individual person. In difficult & extreme situations people don't at all think about the norms of the society because in such conditions they are the real ones who face the conditions. Hence, the thinking & actions of the humans are not predetermined, but the same people have their freewill.

The fact remains that world is made of both the things – he living as well as non-living tings. The qualities of both are included when we think about the world. But thinking comes into practice from the perspectives of humans. So the humans make their hypothesis & prove them to be right, rational & logical on he basis of their observations. This does not mean that they have observed all the phenomenon that have taken place. Some of the laws are just made by saying, "This would happen because of the rule of uniformitarianism". But this rule assumes that things happened in the past will again repeat them in present & in future. This rule may apply only when disturbances don't occur. People have their freewill so they can opt their own views and may change others thinking.

Hence, science cannot always be deterministic in every case. Freewill of the people plays an important role in modifying science, as a result science cannot remain absolute I its way. It is always based on observations & experiments o some flaws in it may change the whole results. Things remain to be deterministic only when they won't be affected any external things & even people can't guess about the disturbances that may occur. People's freewill comes into practice when such disturbance changes the basic laws of science.

At last I would conclude that things are deterministic only till they aren't affected by unknown things & freewill of people plays important role when these things are affected by external forces &new concept or idea is needed to explain that phenomenon.

1 comment:

If actions are predetermined, then can a person remain in a state of non-action.Now that human beings know the argument of determinism, why can’t choose non-action OR how will be that state of non-action be explained? Let’s say Mr.X has an exam, he doesn’t study, he doesn’t appear for the test and he fails. Causality is seen clearly, that as he didn’t take the exam, he failed; given this case is doesn’t make sense to extend it further saying that he never had a choice. Rather his choice of being in that state was at the first place affected by the fact that he knew determinism. It may seem example-specific but thinking about the operation of determinism, knowing if it works is equivalent to reasoning.Another problem in determinism is that if actions are devoid of free will, then what is their composition? What the word action means is an act or its complexes. Purpose of an action is seen in its effect- immediate or consequential. Here lies the main problem that can determinants of action be compressed to a law? The approach in making such metaphysical laws involves ‘determinants’- which are listed, studied at their state of nature and applied by observing their patterns. It should rather be the determinant, which is a single causal factor that initiates action. The causality function ends at this stage, there still remains choice of how to act. That can never be pre-determined as study of psychology is the only tool in such processes. So when the method of determinism involves subjective factors and connecting them with their respective neurological bases, the system becomes insufficient to formulate ‘laws of determinism’